A Staffordshire earthenware figure of the Arctic explorer, Sir John Franklin (1786-1847), the name 'SIR JOHN FRANKLIN' painted in gold on the base. He is dressed in naval uniform and hat, and stands in front of a rock holding a telescope. The rock and the face and hands of the figure are coloured, the uniform is white with the details picked out in gold. The figure, a pair with his wife Jane, similarly inscribed 'LADY FRANKLIN', probably dates from the early 1850s when highly-publicised search expeditions were seeking the missing explorer and his crews.